**WINNER OF THE NERO BOOK AWARDS DEBUT FICTION AWARD 2025** 'I'll be thinking about it for
ever' Barbara Kingsolver 'A gorgeously written story...a must-read' Jennie Godfrey 'Powerful
and beautifully written... Lynch is a huge new talent in fiction' Good Housekeeping Book of
the Month 'I was caught up from the first page and completely taken aback by this story. I
loved it' Clare Chambers A mother following her heart. A father with the law on his side. A
child caught in the middle. 1982 Dawn is a young wife and mother hemmed in by village life.
Then Hazel appears like a torch in the dark. Their attraction is instant and suddenly Dawn's
world is more joyful and more complicated than she ever expected. 2022 Maggie has always
lived with an absence where her mother should be. Her father never speaks of her and it feels
impossible to ask. Then an official letter arrives with news from the past and Maggie must
face a truth far bigger than just her family's secret. 'Explores love and loss intimacy and
justice custody and care...it's brilliant I couldn't put it down' Anita Rani Woman's Hour
'A beautiful and tender exploration of parental love prejudice and the things we carry' Rachel
Joyce 'A brilliant book... Full of heart sympathy and sadness' Sara Pascoe 'A triumph! Like
the great Maggie O'Farrell Claire Lynch deals brilliantly with both big themes and small
moments' Elin Hilderbrand 'Smart and heartbreaking' Guardian ***READERS ARE IN LOVE WITH A
FAMILY MATTER*** 'I would rate this 10 stars if I could' 'Utterly brilliant I was captivated
from page one' 'This book had my whole heart and more' 'A beautiful heartbreaking important
book' 'I can't get the story out of my head' 'It totally broke my heart' 'I'll be thinking of
these characters for a long time to come'
